Thursday, June 26, 2008

Miss Heather carries Jessie to the new treadmill. Heather is in charge of Jessie's PT, so she concentrates on walking again. She is incredible, just like all the therapists here at KKI.This new split-treadmill is supposed to help Jessie walk better. Very few hospitals in the world have one, Kennedy Krieger being one of them that does. Jessie's not nearly as excited about this piece of equipment as we are.

Jessie loves the playroom. This is Jessie playing with Macey and Lilly.We keep this next to Jessie's bed so that she can see her friends and we can remind the nurses how she looked before surgery. Hey, Kristi's college roommate and her family came for a visit today. It was such a treat to see Maura and her kids. Al, Lynn, and Jody came for a visit as well. It's always a pleasure to see them.

Jessie continues to make advancements each day, and we thank our father in heaven for these blessings.

Tentative Release Date : 07/17/2008 - 3 weeks and counting!!!!

Please say a prayer for Mrs. Wolf and her family, who cares for other people, even when her health is down.

Please pray for Audrey and her parents. Audrey has a tumor in her adrenal gland. Please pray that it not be malignant.

11 comments:

Anonymous
said...

This little girl is such an inspiration! I've shared her story with my discleship partners and the men's group at my church. We all continue to pray for her speedy recovery. I think about Jessie every time I ride by Stuard Elementary on my bicycle and see the pink ribbons and "Stuard loves Jessie" on the play ground fence.

It breaks my heart to see such a precious little girl crying in the midst of all of her pinkness. Jessie, keep up the hard work. You can do it! You are even more beautiful than before with your badges of courage on your sweet head. Kristi, it brought tears to my eyes seeing the angel pocket prayer charm on Jessie's table. I enclosed that in a birthday card for your surprise celebration months ago. You are such a woman of courage, strength and faith. Please know you are all in the hearts and minds of so many all of the time. May God bless and continue to give you strenth, endurance, patience and unending love for Him and His blessings.

Jessie, it broke my heart when I saw you crying on the treadmill but it will all be worth it!! You are doing great!!! Keep it up!! I am glad you have a date for being released!!P.S. - Make sure Mom and Dad keep taking you to the playroom - it looks like a great place!

Jessie, everytime you have to get on that treadmill, remember that it will help you become able to run around and play with your brothers and friends. Don't give up. Think pink thoughts with every step that youare asked to tape.

To Cris or Chris, could you explain in a blog entry more about the split treadmill and what is the difference between it and a regular treadmill?

My troubles pale in comparison to the struggles and successes your family is going through. I am encouraged by you everyday when I read your blog. Jessie, you are loved by so many who are sending prayers non-stop to God for your healing.

Jessie all i can say is baby girl you are doing a great job with the surgery you had done a few weeks .All i can say is God is looking down on you and he is helping you pull thru each day .All i can say is you are one heck of a trooper keep up the good work but also remember take day by day and get some rest , it is awsome to see you up and at it .You just have a few more days until you and your parents see your stinky brothers(LOL) .I look forward to read you blog everyday .Again Jessie keep up the good work and god bless you sweetie . Dundalk

Man, but did I enjoy the latest blog note about Jessie moving that left arm. To God be praised,and that tells me that Jessie is thinking pink!!! Wahoo!!! And a letter from the President and First Lady--wow, what an honor!!!

I have to look more closely at the link about the split treadmill, but so far, it only tells about the research, but does not describe the machine itself. Hmmm. It is hard for me to see the machine completely, possibly because of the angle at which the picture was taken, but also, I am visually impaired, so I just may be missing details that others can see. But no matter what, it is indeed fortunate that the KKI has this specialized treadmill. This is why I try to contribute to the Johns Hopkins Children's Center almost every year. Any of us who have contributed are seeing our dollars at work as we follow Jessie's progress. This is so cool, and I am incredibly pleased that Jessie is already doing so well in such a short period of time. OK, enough rambling from me.

About Me

Jessie is 8 years-old and in 2nd Grade. She has 3 brothers, Matt(12), Jake(10) and Josh(10). She loves people, and never met a stranger. She loves to laugh and sing and play. Jessie was diagnosed with Rasmussen's Encephalitis(RE), which is a rare brain disease that usually attacks healthy children about her age. The only known treatment for this cruel disease is a hemispherectomy (surgical removal of one-half of the brain)
This is an account of Jessie's confrontation with RE and her families attempts to navigate through a new world to bring her the best care possible. Surgery was on June 11, 2008.
This Blog is an attempt to help people undertand this disease and surgery, and to help others with kids going through it to find comfort and resource from someone who has been there before.
Read from bottom, up. It will be updated continuously through Jessie's Miraculous Recovery.
**To add Comments, just click "Comments".Or, email Jessie at Jessie@Hallzoo.com.